TSA PreCheck Program - Questions/Experiences for United Airlines Travellers
Oct 5, 2012, 9:20 pm
#1531
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: CLE
Programs: UA 1K MM, DL Plat
Posts: 982
In general PreCheck has worked pretty well for me, and I've been cleared through in several airports in the last 2 months.
However, yesterday I had an infuriating experience at the new EWR C3 checkpoint. The PreCheck entrance is right next to the Premier Line entrance. Premier Line is queued all the way to the end of the stanchions and beyond. PreCheck scanner is located right next to the scanner at the head of the Premier line. Both are staffed by the maroon-coated contract staff whom, in combination, seem to possess about 4 braincells total.
I and several other travelers go up to the PreCheck sign. The maroon coat scans the boarding pass. 3 beeps. I try to go in, and the guy stops me and says "you need to go in THAT line", pointing at the Premier line. I ask: "Isn't this PreCheck? Like, that empty line right there behind you?"
"No, that line there."
Happens identically to two other passengers while I'm in line, both of whom get 3 beeps and are sent to the back of the 20-minute-long Premier line.
Get to the front, and the TSA scans my mobile BP. 3 beeps.
"Oh, you got PreCheck. You should have been in that empty line there!" Pulls aside the stanchion and lets me through.
Yet another fabulous example of the quality, training, dedication and English-speaking capabilities of EWR employees. What a mess!
However, yesterday I had an infuriating experience at the new EWR C3 checkpoint. The PreCheck entrance is right next to the Premier Line entrance. Premier Line is queued all the way to the end of the stanchions and beyond. PreCheck scanner is located right next to the scanner at the head of the Premier line. Both are staffed by the maroon-coated contract staff whom, in combination, seem to possess about 4 braincells total.
I and several other travelers go up to the PreCheck sign. The maroon coat scans the boarding pass. 3 beeps. I try to go in, and the guy stops me and says "you need to go in THAT line", pointing at the Premier line. I ask: "Isn't this PreCheck? Like, that empty line right there behind you?"
"No, that line there."
Happens identically to two other passengers while I'm in line, both of whom get 3 beeps and are sent to the back of the 20-minute-long Premier line.
Get to the front, and the TSA scans my mobile BP. 3 beeps.
"Oh, you got PreCheck. You should have been in that empty line there!" Pulls aside the stanchion and lets me through.
Yet another fabulous example of the quality, training, dedication and English-speaking capabilities of EWR employees. What a mess!
Oct 5, 2012, 9:22 pm
#1532
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2009
Location: Northeast Kansas | Colorado Native
Programs: Amex Gold/Plat, UA *G, Hyatt Globalist, Marriott LT Gold, NEXUS, TSA Disparager Unobtanium
Posts: 21,606
In general PreCheck has worked pretty well for me, and I've been cleared through in several airports in the last 2 months.
However, yesterday I had an infuriating experience at the new EWR C3 checkpoint. The PreCheck entrance is right next to the Premier Line entrance. Premier Line is queued all the way to the end of the stanchions and beyond. PreCheck scanner is located right next to the scanner at the head of the Premier line. Both are staffed by the maroon-coated contract staff whom, in combination, seem to possess about 4 braincells total.
I and several other travelers go up to the PreCheck sign. The maroon coat scans the boarding pass. 3 beeps. I try to go in, and the guy stops me and says "you need to go in THAT line", pointing at the Premier line. I ask: "Isn't this PreCheck? Like, that empty line right there behind you?"
"No, that line there."
Happens identically to two other passengers while I'm in line, both of whom get 3 beeps and are sent to the back of the 20-minute-long Premier line.
Get to the front, and the TSA scans my mobile BP. 3 beeps.
"Oh, you got PreCheck. You should have been in that empty line there!" Pulls aside the stanchion and lets me through.
Yet another fabulous example of the quality, training, dedication and English-speaking capabilities of EWR employees. What a mess!
However, yesterday I had an infuriating experience at the new EWR C3 checkpoint. The PreCheck entrance is right next to the Premier Line entrance. Premier Line is queued all the way to the end of the stanchions and beyond. PreCheck scanner is located right next to the scanner at the head of the Premier line. Both are staffed by the maroon-coated contract staff whom, in combination, seem to possess about 4 braincells total.
I and several other travelers go up to the PreCheck sign. The maroon coat scans the boarding pass. 3 beeps. I try to go in, and the guy stops me and says "you need to go in THAT line", pointing at the Premier line. I ask: "Isn't this PreCheck? Like, that empty line right there behind you?"
"No, that line there."
Happens identically to two other passengers while I'm in line, both of whom get 3 beeps and are sent to the back of the 20-minute-long Premier line.
Get to the front, and the TSA scans my mobile BP. 3 beeps.
"Oh, you got PreCheck. You should have been in that empty line there!" Pulls aside the stanchion and lets me through.
Yet another fabulous example of the quality, training, dedication and English-speaking capabilities of EWR employees. What a mess!
Oct 5, 2012, 9:55 pm
#1533
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: ATL/TLV/SDF
Programs: AA EXP, UA LT Ag, Marriott LT Ti, Hyatt Glob, Avis PC, Busted-Knuckles Club Grand Poobah.
Posts: 2,590
I'lm flying DFW-IAD-BOS tomorrow. I know there isn't a PreCheck line at DFW terminal E.
Does United encode the boarding pass with PreCheck status regardless of airport? Because I'm thinking I can go to terminal D where there is a PreCheck line and take the tram to E.
My BPs are electronic so I have no way to scan/decode them.
Does United encode the boarding pass with PreCheck status regardless of airport? Because I'm thinking I can go to terminal D where there is a PreCheck line and take the tram to E.
My BPs are electronic so I have no way to scan/decode them.
Oct 5, 2012, 9:57 pm
#1534
Join Date: Oct 2011
Location: NYC
Programs: UA GS, SPG Plat, National EC Executive (Replaced Hertz), Hertz PC (Retired)
Posts: 724
I'lm flying DFW-IAD-BOS tomorrow. I know there isn't a PreCheck line at DFW terminal E.
Does United encode the boarding pass with PreCheck status regardless of airport? Because I'm thinking I can go to terminal D where there is a PreCheck line and take the tram to E.
My BPs are electronic so I have no way to scan/decode them.
Does United encode the boarding pass with PreCheck status regardless of airport? Because I'm thinking I can go to terminal D where there is a PreCheck line and take the tram to E.
My BPs are electronic so I have no way to scan/decode them.
Oct 5, 2012, 10:16 pm
#1535
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Grazie Gold Lounge
Programs: UA-2MM; GalacticXpress-Irridium
Posts: 10,332
Long line at Premier security at ORD today. Didn't immediately realize pre-check was a separate line which was empty. I knew I had pre-check and hopped into that line. TSA lady immediately said if I did not have pre-check i would have to return to the back of the regular line. 3 beeps ^ 
.
.
Oct 6, 2012, 12:23 am
#1536
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: BWI / DCA / IAD
Programs: United Gold, Hilton Gold, Marriott Gold, Hertz Gold Club
Posts: 56
Come on HNL.. I can't wait
Oct 6, 2012, 1:09 am
#1537
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Dubai / NYC
Programs: EK-IO, UA-1K2MM, ETIHAD-GOLD, SPG-PLAT LIFETIME, JUMEIRAH SERIUS GOLD
Posts: 5,220
Flew out of EWR last week, 1 beep & regular line
LAX yesterday. Got my 3 beeps. I thought it was Xmas
LAX yesterday. Got my 3 beeps. I thought it was Xmas
Oct 6, 2012, 1:17 am
#1538
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: SUV
Programs: UA *G MM
Posts: 7,018
I just signed up and entered my PASSID (although I haven't received final Global Entry approval due to impossibility of scheduling an interview.)
It says "only allowed on itineraries within US". (Why?) Is the definition of an itinerary the entire ticket or the leg(s) that you are flying up until the next stopover. For example I will be flying WAS-DEN on a RTW in a weeks time.
I suppose, e.g. DEN-SEA-NRT would definitely disqualify a pre-check in DEN.
Also, is the fact that the RTW ticket being issued by LH going to be a problem? Would calling UA to enter something into the PNR be of any help?
It says "only allowed on itineraries within US". (Why?) Is the definition of an itinerary the entire ticket or the leg(s) that you are flying up until the next stopover. For example I will be flying WAS-DEN on a RTW in a weeks time.
I suppose, e.g. DEN-SEA-NRT would definitely disqualify a pre-check in DEN.
Also, is the fact that the RTW ticket being issued by LH going to be a problem? Would calling UA to enter something into the PNR be of any help?
Oct 6, 2012, 6:50 am
#1539
Join Date: May 2003
Location: At This Point, Only G*d Knows!
Posts: 3,467
The EWR AirServ people have been making up their own rules for years and CO (UA) Mgmt speaks with them, they seem fix whatever the issue is and then a few months later start causing a new issues all again.
Dan
Dan
Oct 6, 2012, 7:00 am
#1540
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: SFO/SJC
Programs: UA Silver, Marriott Gold, Hilton Gold
Posts: 14,891
I'lm flying DFW-IAD-BOS tomorrow. I know there isn't a PreCheck line at DFW terminal E.
Does United encode the boarding pass with PreCheck status regardless of airport? Because I'm thinking I can go to terminal D where there is a PreCheck line and take the tram to E.
My BPs are electronic so I have no way to scan/decode them.
Does United encode the boarding pass with PreCheck status regardless of airport? Because I'm thinking I can go to terminal D where there is a PreCheck line and take the tram to E.
My BPs are electronic so I have no way to scan/decode them.
Oct 6, 2012, 7:14 am
#1541
Join Date: May 2003
Location: At This Point, Only G*d Knows!
Posts: 3,467
She was looking at my GE Card when her machine beeped thrice and she dropped her little flashlight on the lectern and asked me to scan my Mobile BP again as she had not heard the machine beep ever.
When it beeped again, she decided they had upgraded it overnight and wished me a pleasant flight.
TSA you ensure your people know the unpleasant rules, how about the only pleasant TSA thing (possibly ever?) PRECHECK!!!!!
Dan
Oct 6, 2012, 7:58 am
#1542
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Honolulu, Hawaiʻi [+MKK4 EBBER R577 EDSEL R577 ELKEY EXERT]
Posts: 15,826
Oct 6, 2012, 9:09 am
#1543
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Here and there
Programs: General member, former 1P
Posts: 583
MCO UA precheck update
Here is an update for UA flyers out of MCO (Orlando) looking forward to Precheck.
Short version: It is coming but no one knows when. The new elite screening line continues to temporarily serve the needs of UA elite flyers.
Long version: I talked to a Greater Orlando Airport Authority (GOAA) official this morning at MCO and asked him about the precheck timetable. He was prickly with me and acted like I was cross-examining him under oath. (I was wearing a UC Santa Cruz Banana Slugs t-shirt, had a 4-year-old with me, and was carrying a sippy cup.) He said it is the TSA's deal and they decide the timeline. He indicated that the new priority screening line for UA, US and other elites - at the furthest right at the Gates 1-59 screening checkpoint - is not going away any time soon.
I also spoke with a senior UA ticket agent who (much more cheerfully) said the same thing. He said TSA workers had done some precheck "practice/training" recently but then progress stopped. The UA agent could not say if the new elite screening line was a temporary or permanent measure.
This is my own speculation, but perhaps the MCO TSA operation has been earmarked for remedial education, which has resulted in precheck being delayed. (The TSA operation at MCO has suffered two recent black eyes - a screener getting caught stealing an iPad in an ABC News sting and a screener missed a pistol carried by a passenger onto UA15 MCO-EWR. The passenger, a firefighter, realized his/her error in the air and self-reported the matter to PAPD in Newark.)
The precheck for MCO gates 60-129, which serves DL, WN and other airlines, remains open. But that checkpoint does no good for UA flyers.
I'll keep the MCO updates coming...
Short version: It is coming but no one knows when. The new elite screening line continues to temporarily serve the needs of UA elite flyers.
Long version: I talked to a Greater Orlando Airport Authority (GOAA) official this morning at MCO and asked him about the precheck timetable. He was prickly with me and acted like I was cross-examining him under oath. (I was wearing a UC Santa Cruz Banana Slugs t-shirt, had a 4-year-old with me, and was carrying a sippy cup.) He said it is the TSA's deal and they decide the timeline. He indicated that the new priority screening line for UA, US and other elites - at the furthest right at the Gates 1-59 screening checkpoint - is not going away any time soon.
I also spoke with a senior UA ticket agent who (much more cheerfully) said the same thing. He said TSA workers had done some precheck "practice/training" recently but then progress stopped. The UA agent could not say if the new elite screening line was a temporary or permanent measure.
This is my own speculation, but perhaps the MCO TSA operation has been earmarked for remedial education, which has resulted in precheck being delayed. (The TSA operation at MCO has suffered two recent black eyes - a screener getting caught stealing an iPad in an ABC News sting and a screener missed a pistol carried by a passenger onto UA15 MCO-EWR. The passenger, a firefighter, realized his/her error in the air and self-reported the matter to PAPD in Newark.)
The precheck for MCO gates 60-129, which serves DL, WN and other airlines, remains open. But that checkpoint does no good for UA flyers.
I'll keep the MCO updates coming...
Oct 6, 2012, 9:53 am
#1544
Moderator: Smoking Lounge; FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: SFO
Programs: Lifetime (for now) Gold MM, HH Gold, Giving Tootsie Pops to UA employees, & a retired hockey goalie
Posts: 28,878
Got the three beeps last night at LAX ^ but I already knew it thanks to the "3"
n.b. SFO has the scanners installed and is dry running them to make sure everything works (and I showed green there as well)
n.b. SFO has the scanners installed and is dry running them to make sure everything works (and I showed green there as well)
Oct 6, 2012, 10:38 am
#1545
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: WAS
Programs: AMEX Platinum, Global Entry, Priority Pass, SPG Gold, HHonors Gold
Posts: 1,594
I doubt that the TSA will allow you to use PreCheck while you are only conditionally approved. I suspect they will force you to wait until after final approval.